This invention relates generally to the field of computers and communication, and in particular to access to information via the World Wide Web.
The World Wide Web has provided users with unprecedented access to information. In particular, the World Wide Web has provided users with an ability to perform targeted searches for specific information. In the commercial field, this has provided vendors an opportunity to provide potential buyers with information specific to their requests. For example, a user can browse the World Wide Web for restaurants, and the restaurateurs can provide details regarding their menu, service, atmosphere, and other material intended to attract the user to their particular establishment. In today""s environment, it is rare to find a commercial concern that is unaffected by their potential customers use of the World Wide Web.
For ease of reading, the paradigm of a client desiring to offer access to client specific information will be utilized herein. The form of the client specific information in this paradigm is a web page, and the intended recipient of this information is termed the user. The term web is used in this paradigm to refer to the World Wide Web, although other examples of client specific information and computer networks could be envisioned as well.
To provide the access to the web pages describing the client""s services and products, the client places the web pages on a web server that is accessible via the web. Large commercial concerns maintain computer systems dedicated to providing potential users with web access to their information. Smaller commercial concerns contract with a web service provider to store their web pages on the provider""s web server. At an intermediate level, a client can provide a computer system that is accessible by a commercial web service provider, but the cost of maintaining a continuous communication link with the commercial web service provider can make this option cost prohibitive. As the popularity and use of the web increases, the demand, and correspondingly the cost, for web page service can be expected to increase as well.
The commercial payback to the client from the use of a web page service is difficult to assess. This difficulty is compounded by the fact that the web is world-wide. A client who offers products that can be easily shipped world-wide may be very well served by a web page on the World Wide Web, but a client offering a local service would not have the same potential return on investment. A client of a product for which a buyer would expect to have local service or support, such as an automobile, may not attract a world-wide audience, but would likely be competitively disadvantaged without advertising information on the web.
The marginal worth of providing additional information via the web, relative to the additional cost to provide this additional information, is also difficult to assess. Web pages are often structured in a hierarchical manner, allowing casual users to scan the possibilities, and allowing interested users to delve into the specifics of a particular client""s offerings. The marginal worth of providing detailed information is dependent upon the likelihood that the user who delves into the detail is an actual buyer, compared to the likelihood that an actual buyer will go elsewhere if not provided this detail. Although most web service providers can provide a client with a count of the number of users that have accessed a particular web page, this feedback is not necessarily a reliable indication of the need for the particular web page, and is not available until after the client has invested the time and cost to provide the page on the web server. Also, although additional detail can be added incrementally, as feedback from users and buyers is obtained, there are costs associated with obtaining this feedback, as well as costs and potential difficulties associated with incrementally adding web pages. As the demand for web page service increases, the cost and complexity of adding additional pages to an existing set of web pages on a commercial web server may become excessive.
Therefore, a need exists for a method and apparatus that allows for access to web pages with minimal dependence upon a web page service provider. A need also exists for a method and apparatus that allows for web page access on an on-demand basis. A need also exists for a method and apparatus for providing web page access based upon the geographic location of the user.